Equity
Also called: Equitable jurisdiction, law of equity
A body of law developed by the Court of Chancery to supplement and correct the common law where strict legal rules produced unjust results — now administered alongside common law in all courts.
Definition
Equity is a distinct source of English law, developed from the 15th century onwards by the Lord Chancellor sitting in the Court of Chancery. Where the common law courts awarded only monetary damages and required strict legal rights, equity intervened to provide additional remedies — injunctions, specific performance, trusts, rescission, and rectification — and to prevent unconscionable conduct. The two systems were fused procedurally by the Judicature Acts 1873–75 (now the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/54/contents" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Senior Courts Act 1981</a>): all courts now administer both common law and equitable rules, but equity and common law remain conceptually distinct. Where they conflict, equity prevails (<em>Walsh v Lonsdale</em> (1882)). Key equitable doctrines include: the trust (a person — the trustee — holds property for the benefit of another — the beneficiary); the fiduciary duty (a duty of loyalty owed by certain persons such as solicitors, directors, and trustees); unconscionability (equity will not allow a party to take advantage of an unconscionable bargain); and the equitable maxims (e.g. "he who comes to equity must come with clean hands"; "equity will not assist a volunteer"). Equitable remedies — injunctions, specific performance, account of profits — are discretionary, unlike common law damages which are available as of right.
In practice
Equity matters most in: property disputes (trusts of the family home under TOLATA 1996; constructive trusts arising from contributions to purchase price); company and commercial law (directors' fiduciary duties, injunctions to restrain breach of confidence); and family law (proprietary estoppel claims, beneficial interests). If you are in a dispute about property ownership where there is no formal written transfer, equity may recognise an interest based on contributions, promises, or conduct. See the <a href="/glossary/fiduciary-duty" class="body-link">fiduciary duty entry</a>, the <a href="/glossary/estoppel" class="body-link">estoppel entry</a>, and the <a href="/articles/behind-the-terms-estoppel" class="body-link">estoppel article</a>.